A Visit to Loutra Pozar

One of the most popular places to visit in this region is Loutra Pozar, a thermal spa located in the foothills of Mount Kaimaktsalan/Voras. It is less than 40 km from Edessa and after enquiring at the bus station I have a plan for how to get there (and back!). The bus from Edessa departs to the village of Aridaia daily. At the time of writing, this is the timetable. The later departures have an additional connection in the village of Skydra. I was told that there was a bus from Aridaia to Pozar but it wasn’t a regular service. It is just 15km from Aridaia to Pozar baths so if necessary a taxi would be the best option. I roughly gauge the cost of a taxi at 1€ per kilometre and then a bit extra.

I bought a ticket for the 10 am from Edessa to Aridaia for 3.60€

It was a very enjoyable journey through the fertile valleys of fruit-production country. Every piece of land to the left and to the right was given to fruit cultivation. Some trees were grown using the espalier method, where the branches are tied into a fan shape usually suited to pears and apples. (Years of watching Alan Titchmarsh, don’t you know!) We passed through a couple of agricultural towns where the tractors seemed to outnumber the cars.

Before long the magnificent snow-capped Mount Kaimaktsalan came into view. It sits on the border with North Macedonia giving a sense of how close the neighbouring country is. Something about an imposing mountain like this almost makes your heart stop.

40 minutes later we arrived at Aridaia Bus Station. As soon as I disembarked from the bus I could feel the wind chill in the air. At just above freezing the strong wind whipping down from the mountains made it feel much colder. This is the coldest it has been since I arrived in Greece but it is a bright and sunny day which is all that matters.

I made enquiries in the bus station about the bus to Pozar. The lady told me that during the week there is only one bus that departs at 1330 and returns straight back. It didn’t make sense to wait for it but she asked me if I would like a taxi. She said there was usually a taxi outside the bus station but not at the moment. She phoned one for me and 5 minutes later he was there.

The taxi journey didn’t take long. The driver gave me his card and told me to phone him when I was ready to come back. The cost was 15€ per way which is what I’d more or less guessed. He dropped me outside the Information Centre and suggested this would be a good place to start.

And it was. The lady there was very helpful and told me the key highlights that I should see. I took a pleasant stroll along the River of Agios Nikolaos until I came to a bridge that crossed to the Folklore Museum. The lady at the museum gave me a guided tour of this small museum pointing out the traditional Macedonian costumes and the collection of artefacts showing the everyday life of the community of Almopia.

The main occupations in the region were agriculture, livestock farming and logging. Due to the development of technology in the mid 20th century, the cultivation of peaches, tobacco, wheat and hay increased. In the 1970’s this was superseded by fruit production along with beans, sesame, potatoes and peppers.

The lady told me that the museum had been open for only 3 months and she was responsible for its creation. The artefacts had been donated by the local people of Almopia. I’m sure this will become a popular asset to the area.

Back on the other side of the river, there are signs that Carnival season is upon us and a reminder that I have some exciting events coming up.

Close to the Folklore Museum is the first of the outdoor thermal baths. The water that pours into the pool is geothermal and flows in at a constant temperature of 37 degrees. The waterfall to the left of the picture where the three young men are standing is ice melt. That’s crazy! They received a rapturous round of applause from the people in the pool for braving it! Cold water therapy has been proven to have health benefits but I’m too much of a coward to try it. I can however, attest to the healing properties of thermal baths and have sampled several in my travels around Greece. Today with a wind chill of 1 degree above freezing and chest infection still to correct itself – I won’t be partaking of the waters today.

Further along the river, I passed another of the outdoor pools but it didn’t have the ‘wow factor’ of the first pool. Tickets to the outdoor pools are 3€ for a 30 minute session. Private spas and a hammam are also dotted around the site.

Continuing along the river, I headed towards the cafe. The lady in the information centre had told me that if I took the steps behind the cafe there was a nice walking trail through the forest. Running alongside the steps are further waterfalls which bring me onto the path that leads through the forest.

Up above the river, the path threads through a forest of oak and maple trees now stripped naked by the winter chill. At the end of the path are huge boulders lying in the river basin – one an almost complete heart shape. Another set of steps zigzagged its way even higher. I climbed about halfway almost forgetting that I had severe vertigo – I was reminded when I turned around to look at the view. Walking up is the easy bit – getting down is a nightmare. I cut my losses before I found myself in trouble, clinging onto tree branches or anything close to hand to steady me. What a plonker.

Spending a couple of hours walking through this stunning landscape on a cold, crisp and sunny winter day has been invigorating – as therapeutic as any thermal spa!

I took a slow amble back past the outdoor spas and then I crossed the river by an old abandoned spa hotel (seen so often at once popular spa towns) and then looped back on myself further down the river. I’d planned to get the 1530 bus back to Edessa rather than get the later connecting bus so it was now time to phone Vasili to come and pick me up.

15 minutes later he was here. Chatting on the way back he asked me where else I was visiting. When I told him that I’d just come from Florina he shivered and told me it was a cold place. I don’t know whether it is just a myth that Florina is the coldest place in Greece because Aridaia has felt the coldest yet. The snow that had been forecasted to happen over the last couple of days has yet to materialise.

If you need a taxi in Aridaia I highly recommend Vasili.

Back at the bus station in Aridaia, I purchased my return ticket. With an hour or so to kill before the bus’s departure, I walked a few blocks down to find a cafe for a drink. I passed an emotive statue dedicated to the memory of lost lands and the people from Pontus.

Back at the bus station, I stood in awe at the view of the mountains of Kaimaktsalan to the west and Mount Vermio to the east. Living in the flat Cheshire plains the sight of mountains so vast is incredible to me. These are the things that legends are made of!

Check out the excursions to Pozar from Thessaloniki using the links below.